Parker, an 11-year-old non-verbal boy with autism seen in this undated photo, went missing from a day home in Calgary's north end Thursday July 16, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Calgary Police (Mandatory Credit)

By The Canadian Press

Mother calling for ‘indigo alerts’ amid search for Calgary boy with autism

Jul 21, 2026 | 12:05 PM

CALGARY — A Calgary mother of a seven-year-old boy with autism is starting a campaign to make changes to Alberta’s emergency alert system after the disappearance of another boy with autism almost a week ago.

Jennifer Ball says missing vulnerable children should trigger a faster public notification, even when there’s no evidence they have been abducted.

She has started a petition for an alert similar to an Amber Alert for missing neurodivergent children.

Ball says she would call it an indigo alert, since the deep purple colour is associated with autism awareness.

Last Thursday, 11-year-old Parker was reported missing from his daycare home in Calgary, prompting an extensive search for the boy who has autism and is non-verbal.

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An Amber Alert was issued about two days later, after the Alberta government granted an exemption due to circumstances of the case.

Amanda Pick, CEO the Missing Children Society of Canada, says the current Amber Alert system has a deliberately narrow purpose.

She says she understands why families want broader alerts, but officials must also consider alert fatigue if they become too common.

Pick points to the Child Search Network, a police-operated system that sends geographically targeted text alerts in high-risk missing child cases that don’t meet Amber Alert criteria.

The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

Mother calling for ‘indigo alerts’ amid search for Calgary boy with autism

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